Menstrual Cycle and Fertility Apps, Body Management Tools, and Female Sexual and Reproductive Health
Menstrual Cycle and Fertility Apps, Body Management Tools, and Female Sexual and Reproductive Health

Summary/Abstract: This article reviews and advances existing literature concerning digital health devices articulating the sexual and reproductive body. In this research, previous findings were cumulated showing that ovulation and fertility apps articulate a female body that is predisposed to dynamic data gathering and self-surveillance aiming to supply suitable knowledge concerning users’ reproductive cycles and ovulation symptoms, and we contribute to the literature by indicating that smartphone apps that supply women with data as regards their daily fertility status throughout their periods can assist users in preventing pregnancy. Throughout January 2022, a quantitative literature review of the Web of Science, Scopus, and ProQuest databases was performed, with search terms including “menstrual cycle and fertility apps” + “body management tools,” “female sexual and reproductive health,” and “intimate digital technologies.” As research published between 2015 and 2022 was inspected, only 151 articles satisfied the eligibility criteria. By taking out controversial or ambiguous findings (insufficient/irrelevant data), outcomes unsubstantiated by replication, too general material, or studies with nearly identical titles, we selected 17 mainly empirical sources. Data visualization tools: Dimensions (bibliometric mapping) and VOSviewer (layout algorithms). Reporting quality assessment tool: PRISMA. Methodological quality assessment tools include: AXIS, MMAT, ROBIS, and SRDR.

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